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stay

1
[ stey ]
/ steɪ /
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See synonyms for: stay / staid / stayed / staying on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object), stayed or staid, stay·ing.
verb (used with object), stayed or staid, stay·ing.
noun
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Idioms about stay

    stay the course, to persevere; endure to completion.

Origin of stay

1
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English staien, from Anglo-French estaier, Old French ester, from Latin stāre “to stand, stand up, be standing, stand in attendance”; see origin at stand

Other definitions for stay (2 of 3)

stay2
[ stey ]
/ steɪ /

noun
verb (used with object), stayed, stay·ing.

Origin of stay

2
First recorded in 1505–15; apparently same as stay3 (compare Old French estayer “to hold in place, support”), or perhaps derivative of Middle English steye “rope to steady a mast”; see stay3

Other definitions for stay (3 of 3)

stay3
[ stey ]
/ steɪ /
Chiefly Nautical

noun
any of various strong ropes or wires for steadying masts, funnels, etc.
verb (used with object), stayed, stay·ing.
to support or secure with a stay or stays: to stay a mast.
to put (a ship) on the other tack.
verb (used without object), stayed, stay·ing.
(of a ship) to change to the other tack.

Origin of stay

3
First recorded before 1150; Middle English stai, stey(e), Old English stæg; cognate with German Stag, Dutch stag, Old Norse stag
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use stay in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for stay (1 of 3)

stay1
/ (steɪ) /

verb
noun
See also stay out

Word Origin for stay

C15 staien, from Anglo-French estaier, to stay, from Old French ester to stay, from Latin stāre to stand

British Dictionary definitions for stay (2 of 3)

stay2
/ (steɪ) /

noun
anything that supports or steadies, such as a prop or buttress
a thin strip of metal, plastic, bone, etc, used to stiffen corsets, etc
verb (tr) archaic
(often foll by up) to prop or hold
(often foll by up) to comfort or sustain
(foll by on or upon) to cause to rely or depend

Word Origin for stay

C16: from Old French estaye, of Germanic origin; compare stay ³

British Dictionary definitions for stay (3 of 3)

stay3
/ (steɪ) /

noun
a rope, cable, or chain, usually one of a set, used for bracing uprights, such as masts, funnels, flagpoles, chimneys, etc; guySee also stays (def. 2), stays (def. 3)

Word Origin for stay

Old English stæg; related to Old Norse stag, Middle Low German stach, Norwegian stagle wooden post
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with stay

stay

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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